At least 17 relatives of Ovidio Guzmán López, the youngest son of the notorious drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, crossed into the U.S. last week as part of a deal with the Trump administration, Mexico’s top security official confirmed Tuesday.
Omar García Harfuch acknowledged in a radio interview that members of the El Chapo family crossed into San Diego from Tijuana, calling the move part of “negotiations” between U.S. authorities and one of El Chapo’s sons.
Guzmán López, aka “El Ratón,” was arrested by Mexican authorities in January 2023 and extradited to the U.S. to face drug-trafficking charges eight months later.
Ovidio Guzman Lopez
AP This frame grab from video, provided by the Mexican government, shows Ovidio Guzmán López being detained in Culiacan, Mexico, on Oct. 17, 2019. (AP)
The 35-year-old, described by federal prosecutors as a “leader in one of the most prolific and violent drug trafficking organizations in the world,” was arraigned in federal court in Chicago and initially pleaded not guilty to all charges, but he’s now expected to change his plea to avoid trial.
While details of a possible plea deal remain undisclosed, Guzmán López is expected to share information about the Sinaloa Cartel with U.S. authorities, according to El País.
In an interview with Mexico’s Radio Fórmula, García Harfuch said El Ratón had been giving prosecutors information about members of other criminal organizations, likely as part of a cooperation deal.
“It is evident that his family is going to the U.S. because of a negotiation or an offer that the Department of Justice is giving him,” he said.
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AP In this Jan. 19, 2017 file photo provided U.S. law enforcement, authorities escort Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, center, from a plane in Ronkonkoma, N.Y. (AP)
El Chapo, Guzmán López’s father and one of the founders of the Sinaloa Cartel, is serving a life sentence at a maximum-security prison in Colorado.
On Tuesday, federal prosecutors announced that two alleged leaders of the cartel had been charged with terrorism and material support of terrorism in connection with trafficking massive amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin into the U.S.
With News Wire Services
Originally Published: May 14, 2025 at 12:26 PM EDT
